JPH0815086A - Multi-core optical fiber inspection device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Abstract] [PROBLEMS] To provide a multi-core optical fiber inspection device capable of detecting a change in arrangement order of optical fiber core wires arranged in parallel. A light incidence means 45 is connected to an incident end side of a multi-core optical fiber 18 in which a plurality of optical fiber core wires 21 are collectively arranged in parallel, and an emission side wire number detecting device 46 is connected to an emission end side. The incident light from the light incident means 45 is sequentially incident on the optical fiber core wire 21 from the incident end side optical fiber core wire 23 side, and the light emitted from the emitting end side optical fiber core wire 24 is captured by the emitting side wire number detecting device 46 and the optical fiber. A line number comparison / determination device that detects the arrangement order of the emission end side of the core wire 21 and the arrangement arrangement order of the emission end side and the incident arrangement order of the incident light incident by the light incident means 45.
The arrangement order inspection is performed by comparing with 41, and when the two orders are different, an arrangement order error signal is output. Further, the OTDR1 is provided in the light incident means 45, and the optical loss measurement of the optical fiber core wire 21 by the OTDR1 is performed at the same time as the arrangement order inspection.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a multi-core optical fiber inspection apparatus in which a plurality of optical fiber cores are collectively arranged in parallel.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In the field of optical communication and the like, as shown in FIG. 8, a plurality (four in the figure) of optical fiber core wires 21 are collectively arranged in parallel, and these optical fiber core wires 21 are covered by a covering member. The coated multi-core optical fiber 18 is used, and the optical fiber core wires 21 of the multi-core optical fiber 18 are aligned and arranged in parallel as shown in FIG. 8A, or in FIG. 8B. As shown in (1), an arrangement order inspection is performed to confirm whether the order of the optical fiber core wires 21 is changed.

FIG. 9 shows a conventional multicore optical fiber inspection apparatus for performing such an inspection, and a multicore optical fiber inspection method using this apparatus. In the figure, the multi-core optical fiber 18 to be inspected is formed by four optical fiber core wires 21 like the multi-core optical fiber 18 shown in FIG. With the covering member removed, the multi-core optical fiber 18
The incident end side optical fiber core wire 23 formed by the optical fiber core wire 21 is arranged on the incident end side of the, and the output end side formed by the optical fiber core wire 21 is on the output end side of the multi-core optical fiber 18. The optical fiber core wires 24 are arranged.

On the incident end side optical fiber core wire 23 of the multi-core optical fiber 18, a light introducing multi-core fiber 16 in which four optical fiber core wires 31 are collectively arranged in parallel is an optical fiber connector. It has been confirmed in advance that the optical fiber core wires 31 of the multi-core fiber 16 for light introduction, which are connected through the alignment jig 17, are aligned and arranged in parallel as shown in FIG. 9A. Has been done. 1 is provided on the incident end side of the multi-core fiber 16 for introducing light.
Switching the incident light path from one light source to sequentially make incident light enter each optical fiber core wire 31 of the multi-core fiber 16 for light introduction and sequentially make incident light enter the optical fiber core wire 21 of the multi-core optical fiber 18. The device 14 is connected, and the incident light path switching device 14 is connected to the incident light path switching device drive unit 39. Further, the light source 3 is connected to the incident optical path switching device 14 via an optical fiber 30. The optical fiber core wire 24 on the emission end side of the multicore optical fiber 18 is provided with a light receiving device 25 via a slit plate 34 that is slidable in the vertical direction in the figure, and the light receiving device 25 is provided with a light receiving surface 26. Has been.

In such an apparatus, first, as shown in FIG. 9 (a), the slits 35 of the slit plate 34 are positioned above all the emission end side optical fiber core wires 24 of the multicore optical fiber 18. On the other hand, the first optical fiber core wire 3 of the multi-core fiber 16 for introducing the incident light entering the incident optical path switching device 14 from the light source 3 through the optical fiber 30 is arranged.
1, that is, the light beam is made incident on the uppermost optical fiber core wire 31 in the figure, and 1 of the multicore optical fiber 18 is passed through the optical fiber core wire 31.
The light is made incident on the optical fiber core wire 23 on the second incident end side. Then, as shown in FIG. 9B, the slit plate 34 is moved downward so that the slit 35 is located at the position of the multi-core optical fiber 18.
When the light is emitted from the optical fiber core wire 24 in alignment with the thirteenth emission end side optical fiber core wire 24, the light is received by the light receiving surface 26 of the light receiving device 25 through the slit 35.

In this way, when the order of the incident end side optical fiber core wire 23 of the multicore optical fiber 18 and the order of the exit end side optical fiber core wire 24 are the same, the multicore optical fiber 18 is inspected. The worker who is doing so determines that the order of the uppermost optical fiber core wire 21 of the multicore optical fiber 18 is not changed. Further, in the state of FIG. 9B, the light receiving device receives the light from the first optical fiber core wire 24 on the outgoing end side of the multi-core optical fiber 18.
If 25 cannot receive the light, the slit plate 34 is moved downward until the light can be received, and the operator judges that the order of the first optical fiber core wire 21 of the multi-core optical fiber 18 is changed. To do.

Next, as shown in FIG. 9 (c), the incident light path switching device driving unit 39 drives the incident light path switching device 14 so that the incident light from the light source 3 is supplied to the multi-core fiber 16 for introducing light. Switch to the th optical fiber core wire 31 so that it enters,
The incident light is made to enter the optical fiber core wire 23 on the second incident end side of the multi-core optical fiber 18, and in that state, the slit plate is used as described above.
By moving 34 in the vertical direction, it is confirmed whether the order of the optical fiber core wires 21 of the optical fiber core wires 18 is switched. Then, similarly to the above, the worker drives the incident optical path switching device 14 by the incident optical path switching device driving unit 39 to sequentially enter the third and fourth incident end side optical fiber core wires 23 of the multi-core optical fiber 18. The light was made incident and it was confirmed whether the order of the optical fiber core wires 21 of the multi-core optical fiber 18 was changed.

Instead of connecting the light source 3 to the incident end side of the light-introducing multicore fiber 16 through the incident light path switching device 14, as shown in FIG. The light source 3 is connected to each of the core wires 31, and the incident light from the light source 3 is turned on and off by the multi-core optical fiber.
A device is also used in which the light is made incident on the optical fiber core wires 23 on the respective incident end side 18 in sequence.

[0009]

However, in these devices, the end surface of the optical fiber core wire 24 on the output end side is accurately mirror-cut so that the output light from each optical fiber core wire 24 on the output end side is emitted in parallel. Therefore, it is very difficult to manufacture the inspection device because the light receiving device 25 must receive the light and the slit 35 and the moving mechanism of the slit plate 34 must be extremely elaborate.

If the shape of the slit 35, the moving distance of the slit plate 34, the angle of the light emitted from the optical fiber core wire 21, and the like are inaccurate, the multicore optical fiber 18
Even if it is possible to confirm the presence or absence of abnormalities, it may not be possible to identify which number of the optical fiber core wire 21 has been replaced, and in particular, the optical fiber core wire 21 may be damaged and the optical fiber core wire on the light receiving device 25 side. It was difficult to perform an accurate inspection when it was difficult to receive the emitted light from 21.

The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, and an object thereof is to accurately check which optical fiber core wire of a multi-core optical fiber has been replaced. It is an object of the present invention to provide a multi-core optical fiber inspection device capable of measuring whether or not each optical fiber core wire has a flaw or the like.

[0012]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is constructed as follows. That is, the present invention is a multi-core optical fiber in which a plurality of optical fiber core wires are collectively arranged in parallel is connected to a light incidence means for sequentially making incident light incident on the parallel optical fiber core wires, An emission side wire number detection device is connected to the emission end side of the core optical fiber to capture the emitted light from each optical fiber core wire and detect the arrangement order of the emission end side of the optical fiber core wires arranged in the multi-core optical fiber. , The exit end side detection arrangement of the optical fiber core wire is compared by comparing the exit end side detection arrangement order of the optical fiber core wire detected by the exit side wire number detecting device and the incidence arrangement order of the incident light entered by the light entrance means. When the installation order and the incident installation order of incident light are different, a wire number comparison and determination device that outputs an installation order error signal is provided.

Further, the light incidence means has an OTDR for making incident light incident on the optical fiber core wire and receiving return light scattered and reflected by the optical fiber core wire and returning to detect the optical loss of the optical fiber core wire. Be configured as 1
An incident light path switching device that switches incident light from one light source to sequentially enter the optical fiber core wire of the multi-core optical fiber, and an output optical path switching device that switches light emitted from the optical fiber core wire and makes it enter the emission side wire number detection device. The provision of at least one of the above is also a characteristic configuration of the present invention.

[0014]

In the present invention having the above structure, the incident light is sequentially incident on the optical fiber core wires of the multi-core optical fiber by the light incident means, and the outgoing light emitted through the respective optical fiber core wires is taken in by the emitting side wire number detecting device. The arrangement order of the optical fiber core wires on the emission end side arranged in the multi-core optical fiber is detected, and the detection arrangement side of the detected optical fiber core wires on the emission end side and the incident light incident by the light incident means are detected. And the order of incidence of incident light are compared by the wire number comparison / determination device. And
When the detection arrangement side of the optical fiber core on the emission end side is different from the incident arrangement order of the incident light, an arrangement order error signal is output and the arrangement order of the optical fiber core wires is accurately detected.

[0015]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the description of the present embodiment, the same reference numerals will be given to the same names as those in the conventional example, and the detailed description thereof will be omitted.
FIG. 1 shows the configuration of the essential parts of a first embodiment of a multicore optical fiber inspection apparatus according to the present invention. In the figure,
On the incident end side optical fiber core wire 23 of the multi-core optical fiber 18 to be inspected, a butt jig 17 formed in the same manner as in the conventional example.
A light incident means 45 for sequentially making incident light incident on each optical fiber core wire 21 of the multicore optical fiber 18 is connected via the light introducing multicore fiber 16 and the light incident means 45 switches the incident optical path. Device 14, OTDR (Optical Time Domain Reflec
1), an optical loss detection determination unit 38, an incident optical path switching device drive unit 39, and an incident optical path order determination unit 40.

The output end side optical fiber core wire 24 of the multi-core optical fiber 18 is output from each output end side optical fiber core wire 24 via a butt jig 12 and an optical fiber 32 which function as an optical fiber connector. An emission-side wire number detection device 46 is connected to capture the emitted light and detect the arrangement order of the optical fiber core wire 21 arranged in the multi-core optical fiber 18 on the emission end side. The emitting side wire number detecting device 46 is configured to have four light receiving devices 25 and a line number detecting portion 42, and each light receiving device 25 is connected to each emitting end side optical fiber core wire 24 of the multicore optical fiber 18. Has been done. The multicore optical fiber inspection apparatus of this embodiment is provided with a wire number comparison / determination apparatus 41 and a display apparatus 43.

The OTDR 1 is, for example, as shown in FIG. 6, a device having a light source 3 built therein, and a pulse modulator 2,
The directional coupler 4, the exciter 7, the signal processor 5, and the display device 6 are included. Then, for example, when the connecting optical fiber 10 is connected by the connecting portion 8 and the measured optical fiber 9 is connected via the butt jig 11 as shown in FIG. The light pulse-modulated by the pulse modulator 2 is incident on the exciter 7 via the directional coupler 4, is excited by the exciter 7 and is incident on the optical fiber 10 and the optical fiber 9 as indicated by arrow a in the figure. At the same time, it receives the return light scattered and reflected by the optical fiber 9 by Rayleigh scattering and returning as shown by an arrow b in the figure.

Then, the return light is branched by the directional coupler 4 and is incident on the signal processing unit 5, and the signal processing unit 5 performs signal processing to display the intensity of the returned light (scattered light power) on the display device 6. For example, the optical loss of the optical fiber core wire is detected from the characteristic data of the scattered light power and the length of the optical fiber (optical fiber core wire). In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the detection result of the optical loss of the optical fiber core wire detected by the OTDR 1 as described above is added to the optical loss detection determination unit 38.

The incident light path order determining unit 40 of the light incident means 45 is
It determines the incident order in which the incident light from the OTDR 1 is sequentially incident on the incident end side optical fiber core wire 23 of the multicore optical fiber 18 via the light introducing multicore fiber 16, and the incident optical path switching device driving unit 39. Incident light path order command signal to
The switching order of the incident optical path switching device 14 by the incident optical path switching device driving unit 39 is determined, and an incident optical path order determination signal is added to the optical loss detection determination unit 38 and the line number comparison determination device 41.
As a result, the order in which the incident light from the OTDR 1 is made incident on the optical fiber core wire 23 among the incident end side optical fiber core wires 23 of the multi-core optical fiber 18, that is, the incident light incidence arrangement The order is made to be understood by the optical loss detection determination unit 38 and the wire number comparison determination device 41.

As shown in FIG. 2A, when the incident light is sequentially incident from the upper incident end side optical fiber core wire 23, as shown in FIG.
, And when the incident light is sequentially incident from the lower incident end side optical fiber core wire 23 as shown in (c) of the figure, the incident light is incident from the lower side, such as ,. It is the order when they are numbered and arranged. Therefore, when the incident arrangement order is counted from the upper side, it becomes ,, in FIG. 2 (a), and becomes, in FIG. 2 (c).

The optical loss detection determining unit 38 receives the incident optical path order determination signal from the incident optical path order determining unit 40 and receives the O
On the basis of the optical loss detection signal added from the TDR1, the incident arrangement order of the incident end side optical fiber core wire 23 of the multi-core optical fiber 18 and the value of the optical loss are made to correspond to each other, for example, the incident end side optical fiber core wire 23 Optical fiber core wire 21
The optical loss is determined to be −2 dB, and the determination result is added to the display device 43.

In the display device 43, when the judgment signal is added from the optical loss detection judging section 38, the order of incidence of the optical fiber core wires 23 on the incident end side of the multi-core optical fiber 18 and the order of the optical fibers in the order of incidence are arranged. The optical loss of the core wire 21 is displayed correspondingly.

The light-receiving device 25 of the output-side wire number detecting device 46 is provided for each of the output-end-side optical fiber core wires of the multicore optical fiber 18.
The light emitted from 24 is received, the light is detected, and a detection signal is applied to the wire number detection unit 42. The line number detection unit 42 receives the light detection signal from each light receiving device 25, and detects the arrangement order of the emission end side of the optical fiber core wire 21 arranged in the multicore optical fiber 18, for example, When light is sequentially output from the upper optical fiber core wire 24 of the output end side optical fiber core wires 24 of the multi-core optical fiber 18 and received by the light receiving device 25, as shown in FIG. The detection arrangement order on the end side is
From the upper side, it is determined that, when light is sequentially emitted from the lower optical fiber core wire 21 of the emission end side optical fiber core wires 24 of the multicore optical fiber 18 and received by the light receiving device 25, As shown in (c) of 2, it is determined that the emission end side detection arrangement order is from the bottom side. Then, the determination result of the detection arrangement order is added to the wire number comparison and determination device 41.

The line number comparison / determination device 41 receives the determination result of the emission end side detection arrangement order from the line number detection section 42 of the emission side line number detection device 46, and receives the emission end side detection arrangement order and the light By comparing the incident arrangement order of the incident light incident by the incident means 45, when the emission end side detection arrangement order of the optical fiber core wire 21 and the incident light incident arrangement order are the same, an arrangement order normal signal is output, When the two arrangement orders are different, an arrangement order error signal is output.

For example, as shown in FIG. 2A, the incident arrangement order of the incident light determined and entered by the incident light path order determining unit 40 is from the top, ... The emission end side detection arrangement order detected by the part 42 is also
,,, outputs the arrangement order normal signal,
On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 2 (b), the order of the incident light incident is from the top, and the order of detecting the exit end of the optical fiber core 21 is from the upper side.
, ,, the arrangement order error signal is output because the emission end side detection arrangement order of the optical fiber core wire 21 and the incident light incidence arrangement order are different. Then, when the arrangement order normal signal or the arrangement order error signal is added to the display device 43 and the arrangement order error signal is added, the emission end side detection arrangement order of the optical fiber core wire 21 and the incident arrangement of the incident light are arranged. The sequential data is also added to the display device 43.

The display device 43 has a multi-core optical fiber 18 when the arrangement number normal signal is applied from the wire number comparison / determination device 41.
It is displayed that the arrangement order is normal, and when an arrangement order error signal is added from the wire number comparison and determination device 41, it is displayed that the arrangement order of the multi-core optical fiber 18 is switched, Data on the emission end side detection arrangement order of the optical fiber core wire 21 and the incident light incidence arrangement order is displayed.

The present embodiment is configured as described above,
Next, the operation will be described. First, the incident light path order determination unit 40 of the light incidence means 45 determines the order of incidence on the incident end side optical fiber core wire 23 of the multi-core optical fiber 18, and the incident light path order determination unit 40 transmits the incident light path order command signal to the incident light path. In addition to the switching device drive unit 39, an incident optical path order determination signal is added to the optical loss detection determination unit 38 and the line number comparison determination device 41. Then,
The incident light path switching device drive unit 39 receives the incident light path order command signal, drives the incident light path switching device 14, and sequentially switches the incident light paths in the order determined by the incident light path order determination unit 40.

The incident light emitted from the OTDR 1 and propagating through the optical fiber 30 is switched by the incident optical path switching device 14 and sequentially enters the optical fiber core wire 31 of the multicore fiber 16 for introducing light. The light is sequentially incident on the incident end side optical fiber core wire 23 of the multi-core optical fiber 18 via.
Then, the light propagates through the optical fiber core wire 21 and is emitted from the emitting end side optical fiber core wire 24 of the multicore optical fiber 18, and each light receiving device of the emitting side wire number detecting device 46 via the optical fiber 32.
The optical detection signal captured by the 25 is the wire number detection unit.
In addition to 42, the wire number detection unit 42 detects the arrangement order of the emission end side optical fiber core wires 24. Then, the detection result is added to the wire number comparison / determination device 41 as the emission end side detection arrangement order of the optical fiber core wire 21 of the multi-core optical fiber 18.

Then, the line number comparison / determination device 41 determines the arrangement order of the incident light and the incident arrangement order of the incident light determined from the incident optical path order determining signal added from the incident optical path order determining unit 40. 2A and 2C, when the emission end side detection arrangement order and the incident light incidence arrangement order are the same, the wire number comparison / determination device 41 determines the arrangement order. A normal signal is applied to the display device 43, and the display device 43 displays that the arrangement of the multicore optical fibers 18 is normal. Further, as shown in FIG. 2B, when the emission end side detection arrangement order and the incident light incidence arrangement order are different, an arrangement order error signal is output from the line number comparison / determination device 41 and displayed. At the same time as being displayed on the device 43, the display device 43 also displays which optical fiber core wire 21 has been replaced.

That is, as shown in FIGS. 2 (a) and 2 (c), when the optical fiber core wires 21 of the multi-core optical fiber 18 are aligned and arranged in parallel, the order of incidence of incident light is set. When the arrangement order of the detections on the emission end side is the same, but the arrangement order of the optical fiber core wires 21 of the multi-core optical fiber 18 is switched as shown in FIG. The installation order is from the upper side to ,, while the emission end side detection arrangement order of the optical fiber core wire 21 is from the upper side to ,, and the emission end side detection arrangement order and the incident light incidence arrangement order. Therefore, the wire number comparison and determination device 41 can determine whether the arrangement order of the optical fiber core wires 21 is normal, and the arrangement order of the optical fiber core wires 21 of the multi-core optical fiber 18 is in the middle. If it is judged that the replacement order has been replaced by By adding the data of the emission end side detection arrangement order and the incident arrangement order to the display device 43, for example, the second optical fiber core wire 21 and the third optical fiber core wire 21 from the top are replaced on the way. It is displayed and confirmed on the display device 43.

Further, the light incident means 45 of the multi-core optical fiber inspection apparatus of the present embodiment is configured to have the OTDR 1, and the OTDR 1 causes the incident light to be incident on the optical fiber core wire 21 and at the optical fiber core wire 21. The light loss of the optical fiber core wire 21 is detected by receiving the returning light that is scattered and reflected, and the value of the light loss detected by the OTDR 1 is added to the light loss detection determination unit 38, Loss detection judgment unit
38 receives the incident light path order determination signal from the incident light path order determination unit 40, and the incident arrangement order of the incident light incident on the incident end side optical fiber core wire 23 of the multi-core optical fiber 18 and the OTDR 1
The optical loss of the optical fiber core wire 21 having the incident arrangement order of the incident light is −2 dB, and the optical fiber core wire 21 having the incident arrangement order of the incident light is correlated with the value of the optical loss detected by Is added to the display device 43 and the determination result is displayed on the display device 43.

According to this embodiment, according to the above operation, the order of the incident light incident by the light incident means 45 and the emission end side detection arrangement of the optical fiber core wire 21 detected by the emission side wire number detecting device 46 are arranged. Since the order is compared to detect the arrangement order of the optical fiber core wires 21 of the multi-core optical fiber 18, it is accurately determined whether the optical fiber core wires 21 are aligned or the arrangement order is changed. In addition, it is possible to accurately detect and confirm which optical fiber core wire 21 is replaced when the arrangement order is changed.

At the same time, the optical loss of each optical fiber core wire 21 is detected by the OTDR 1, and each optical fiber core wire 21 is detected.
The optical loss of the optical fiber 21 can be grasped at the same time, and even when the optical fiber core wire 21 has an abnormality such as a scratch or a disconnection, it can be accurately detected. And thereby, in this embodiment, it becomes possible to simultaneously inspect the abnormality of each optical fiber core wire 21 of the multi-core optical fiber 18 and the abnormality of the arrangement order of the optical fiber core wire 21, and these inspections are performed separately. It is possible to inspect the multi-core optical fiber 18 in a shorter time than the above-described procedure.

FIG. 3 shows the essential configuration of a second embodiment of the multicore optical fiber inspection apparatus according to the present invention. This embodiment is different from the first embodiment in that the OTDR 1 is provided to each of the incident end side optical fiber core wires 23 of the multi-core optical fiber 18 via the butting jig 11 and the optical fiber 30.
Is connected. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the light incident means 45 does not have the incident optical path switching device driving section 39, and the incident optical path order command signal from the incident optical path order determining section 40 is directly added to each OTDR1 and output by the OTDR1. By switching the on / off operation of transmitting the emitted light, the incident light is sequentially incident on the incident end side optical fiber core wire 23 of the multi-core optical fiber 18.

The present embodiment is configured as described above,
The incident light from the OTDR 1 is sequentially incident on the incident end side optical fiber core wire 23 of the multicore optical fiber 18 by controlling the on / off operation of the outgoing light transmission of each OTDR 1 by the incident optical path order command signal of the incident optical path order determination unit 40. As a result, the same operation as that of the above-described embodiment and the same effect can be obtained.

FIG. 4 shows the essential configuration of a third embodiment of the multicore optical fiber inspection apparatus according to the present invention. This embodiment is different from the first embodiment in that the butt jig 19 and the four optical fiber core wires 33 are aligned with the optical fiber core wire 24 on the emission end side of the multi-core optical fiber 18. By connecting the outgoing light path switching device 15 for switching the outgoing light from the outgoing end side optical fiber core wire 24 to be incident on the outgoing side wire number detecting device 46 through the collectively arranged outgoing light propagation multi-core fiber 20. is there.

An emission optical path switching device drive unit 36 is connected to the emission optical path switching device 15, and the emission optical path switching device 15 is driven by the emission optical path switching device drive unit 36. The position of the outgoing optical path when the outgoing light is taken in from the outgoing end side optical fiber core wire 24 of the multi-core optical fiber 18 is added to the wire number detecting unit 42, and the wire number detecting unit 42 receives this signal and Upon receiving the signal from the light receiving device 25, the optical fiber core wire 21
It is possible to detect the emission end side detection arrangement order of.

In this embodiment as well, as in the first embodiment, O
Incident light from the TDR 1 is switched by the incident optical path switching device 14 so that the incident end side optical fiber core of the multi-core optical fiber 18 is switched.
Light sequentially incident on the light source 23 and emitted from the optical fiber core 24 on the emission end side is switched by the emission optical path switching device 15 and is incident on the light receiving device 25, which operates in the same manner as in the first embodiment, and It is possible to exert an effect.

FIG. 5 shows the construction of the essential parts of a fourth embodiment of the multicore optical fiber inspection apparatus according to the present invention. A feature of the present invention different from the third embodiment is that a second OTDR 48 different from the OTDR 1 of the light incident means 45 is connected to the outgoing optical path switching device 15 via an optical fiber 37. In addition, the light emitted from the second OTDR 48 is switched by the output optical path switching device 15 so that the multi-core optical fiber is
The return light scattered by the optical fiber core wire 21 of the multi-core optical fiber 18 is adapted to be incident on the optical fiber core wire 24 of the emitting end side 18 of the multi-core optical fiber 18 and return to the OTDR 48 side in the same manner as above. The OTDR 48 detects the returned light and measures the optical loss of the optical fiber core wire 21.

This embodiment also operates in the same manner as the third embodiment and can achieve the same effect. Further, in the present embodiment, the second OTDR 48 is connected to the emission optical path switching device 15, and light is incident from the emission end side optical fiber core wire 24 of the multicore optical fiber 18 to the incident end side optical fiber core wire 23 side. The return light that is propagated and scattered and reflected back from the incident end side optical fiber core wire 23 side to the emission end side optical fiber core wire 24 side is returned to the OTDR.
48, and by measuring the optical loss of the optical fiber core wire 21 from the opposite direction to the detection of the optical loss by the OTDR1, it becomes possible to perform optical loss measurement from both directions of each optical fiber core wire 21. It is possible to inspect both the optical loss when light is incident on the fiber core wire 21 from both directions and the arrangement order of the optical fiber core wires 21.

The present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, and various embodiments can be adopted.
For example, in the above embodiment, the multi-core optical fiber 18 to be inspected is a 4-core optical fiber in which four optical fiber core wires 21 are arranged in parallel, but a multi-core optical fiber is always a 4-core optical fiber. The optical fiber is not limited to the core optical fiber.
A multi-core optical fiber having a core may be used. As described above, when the number of cores of the multi-core optical fiber is different, the incident optical path switching device 14 and the outgoing optical path switching device are adjusted according to the number of cores.
The numbers of 15, the OTDR 1, the light receiving devices 25, and the like are set appropriately.

In the third embodiment, the light incident means
Although 45 is configured to have the incident light path switching device 14, instead of providing the incident light path switching device 14, as shown in FIG. 3, a plurality of OTDRs 1 are provided to configure the light incidence means 45,
It is also possible to provide the emission optical path switching device 15 that switches the emission light only on the emission end side optical fiber core wire 24 side of the multi-core optical fiber 18 to make it enter the emission side line number detection device 46.

Further, in the above embodiment, the display device 43 is provided, and the display device 43 causes the optical loss of each optical fiber core wire 21 of the multi-core optical fiber 18 and the arrangement order of the optical fiber core wires 21 to be changed or not to be changed. Although the state and the like are displayed together, two display devices are provided so that one display device displays the optical loss of the optical fiber core wire 21 and the other display device displays the arrangement order of the optical fiber core wire 21. The replacement may be displayed, or instead of providing the display device, a notification device may be provided for notifying the optical loss of the optical fiber core wire 21 or the replacement of the arrangement order by voice or the like.

Further, in the above embodiment, the light incidence means 45
Were configured with OTDR1
The light incident means 45 may be configured by providing another light source 3 instead of the TDR 1.

Further, in the above embodiment, the wire number comparison / determination device 41 is configured to output the arrangement order normal signal when the incident arrangement order of the incident light and the emission end side detection arrangement order are the same. The arrangement order normal signal may not be output, and only the arrangement order error signal may be output when the two arrangement orders are different.

[0046]

According to the present invention, the arrangement order of the optical fiber core wires arranged in the multi-core optical fiber on the emitting end side is detected by the emitting side wire number detecting device, and the detected emitting side of the optical fiber core wires is detected. By comparing the detection arrangement order and the incident arrangement order of the incident light incident by the light incident means, it is possible to accurately determine whether the optical fiber core wires of the multi-core optical fiber are aligned or the arrangement order is switched. It becomes possible to inspect, and it is possible to accurately inspect which optical fiber core wire is replaced when the arrangement order of the optical fiber core wire is replaced.

Further, the light incident means has an OTDR for making incident light incident on the optical fiber core and receiving return light scattered and reflected by the optical fiber core and returning to detect the optical loss of the optical fiber core. According to the present invention configured, since it is possible to simultaneously measure the arrangement order of the optical fiber core wires of the multi-core optical fiber and the optical loss of each optical fiber core wire, for example, the optical fiber core wire itself such as a scratch or a disconnection And the abnormality in the arrangement order of the optical fiber core wires can be simultaneously measured. Then, it becomes possible to perform both measurements in a shorter time than measuring the abnormality of the optical fiber core itself and the abnormality of the arrangement order of the optical fiber cores separately, and very efficiently inspecting the multi-core optical fiber. It can be performed.

Further, the incident light path switching device for switching the incident light from one light source to sequentially enter the optical fiber core wire of the multi-core optical fiber and the outgoing light from the optical fiber core wire for the emitting side wire number detecting device. According to the present invention in which at least one of the outgoing light path switching devices to be made incident is provided, it is possible to reduce the number of light sources and the number of devices that take in the outgoing light in the outgoing side wire number detection device, and the cost is reduced accordingly. Can be cheaper.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a first view of a multicore optical fiber inspection apparatus according to the present invention.
It is a main part block diagram which shows the Example of.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of an incident arrangement order of incident light and an example of an emission side detection arrangement order that are compared by the wire number comparison and determination apparatus of the above-described embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a second inspection apparatus for a multi-core optical fiber according to the present invention.
It is a main part block diagram which shows the Example of.

FIG. 4 is a third inspection device for a multi-core optical fiber according to the present invention.
It is a main part block diagram which shows the Example of.

FIG. 5 is a fourth multi-core optical fiber inspection apparatus according to the present invention.
It is a main part block diagram which shows the Example of.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration example of OTDR1.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing an optical loss measuring method of an optical fiber core wire by OTDR.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration example of a multi-core optical fiber.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a conventional multicore optical fiber inspection apparatus and its operation.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing another example of a conventional multicore optical fiber inspection apparatus.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 OTDR 18 Multi-core optical fiber 21 Optical fiber core wire 23 Incident end side optical fiber core wire 24 Outgoing end side optical fiber core wire 41 Wire number comparison / determination device 45 Light incident means 46 Emission side wire number detecting device

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A multi-core optical fiber in which a plurality of optical fiber core wires are collectively arranged in parallel is connected to a light-incident means for sequentially making incident light incident on the parallel optical fiber core wires on the incident end side. An emission side wire number detecting device is connected to the emission end side of the optical fiber to detect the arrangement order of the emission end side of the optical fiber core wire which is arranged to capture the emitted light from each optical fiber core wire and is arranged in the multi-core optical fiber, The emission end side detection arrangement of the optical fiber core wire is compared by comparing the emission end side detection arrangement order of the optical fiber core wire detected by the emission side wire number detection device with the incidence arrangement order of the incident light incident by the light incidence means. An apparatus for inspecting a multi-core optical fiber, which is provided with a line number comparison / judgment device that outputs an arrangement order error signal when the order and the incident arrangement order of incident light are different. 2. The light incident means has an OTDR which makes incident light incident on an optical fiber core wire and receives return light scattered and reflected by the optical fiber core wire and returning to detect an optical loss of the optical fiber core wire. The multicore optical fiber inspection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the inspection apparatus is configured as follows. 3. An incident light path switching device for switching incident light from one light source to sequentially enter the optical fiber core wire of the multi-core optical fiber, and for switching outgoing light from the optical fiber core wire to enter the emitting side wire number detecting device. The multi-core optical fiber inspection device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein at least one of the outgoing optical path switching devices is provided.